ORLANDO, Fla. – Norfolk State men's tennis came out on top in the first leg of the Battle of the Bay with a 6-1 win over Hampton on Friday in Orlando, Florida.
 
A victory by default at No. 3 doubles helped propel the Spartans (2-3) to the doubles point. Charles Hudson and Fernando Fernandes downed Ignacio Guevel and Vini Da Silva, 6-4, on the second court. Flavian Fernandez and Agustin Carrizo then handed the point to NSU with a 6-4 win against Luke Thompson and Davy Van Geerke.
 
NSU earned a victory by default on the sixth court and swept the first four contested singles matches to clinch the win.
 
Guevel downed Basil Post in the fifth-seeded match – 6-1, 6-3. Carrizo kept the ball rolling in the Spartans' favor with a 6-2, 6-2 sweep over Hudson on the fourth court – clinching the match in the process.
 
Dan Dumitrascu picked up a straight-sets win over Thompson on the third court – 6-2, 6-2. Andres Alcaraz downed Fernandes by a 6-4, 6-1 score in the second-seeded flight.
 
Van Geerke prevented the sweep with a 7-6, 4-6, 1-0 (10-6) win over Da Silva in the top-flight match.
 
The Spartans begin a stretch of five-consecutive home matches next Thursday, when they host Longwood at 1 p.m.